There was a time when Livan Hernandez could front a team’s rotation. At this stage of his career, the burly right-hander is generally considered nothing more than a fringe starter.
After an unbeaten May, Hernandez will look to get off to a similarly hot start in June when the surging Mets open a four-game road set against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night.
Hernandez (4-1, 4.28 ERA), who only locked up the Mets’ fifth starter spot late in spring training, has been a major contributor to the turnaround. The veteran right-hander had a 6.75 ERA in four April starts but went 3-0 with a 2.70 ERA over five May outings, concluding with a complete game, six-strikeout effort Tuesday in a 6-1 win against Washington.
It took Hernandez 127 pitches - plus an estimated 85 warming up - for his first nine-inning complete game since May 7, 2008.
When the Mets get six innings or more from a starter, they’re 22-7.
One of those victories came May 10, when Hernandez and New York finished a three-game sweep of Pittsburgh (22-28). Hernandez allowed two runs in six innings to improve to 4-4 in his career against the Pirates.
On Monday he’ll get a rematch with Pittsburgh’s starter from that series finale. Ian Snell (1-6, 5.43) lost despite a solid showing, yielding three runs over six innings while striking out five.
Snell allowed six runs and eight hits in five innings Tuesday against the Chicago Cubs in a rain-shortened 6-1 loss.
Snell is 0-2 with a 6.33 ERA in five starts against the Mets - all Pittsburgh losses.
Left-hander Oliver Perez was scratched from a scheduled rehab start Sunday with Class AAA Buffalo because of continued right knee inflammation. Perez, who had an MRI in New York on Thursday, will return to the Mets’ complex in Port St. Lucie, Fla., while the knee discomfort subsides, and he has been taken off the rehab assignment.
GM Omar Minaya expects Perez will continue tossing light bullpen sessions in the interim in order to avoid losing arm strength.
After rookie left-hander Jon Niese initially took over Perez’s rotation spot, he was demoted and right-hander Tim Redding has taken the last three turns. Redding’s time in the rotation might be short-lived, however, if his performances don’t improve.
Redding allowed seven runs in four-plus innings against the Marlins on Saturday, lifting his ERA to 9.20. Manager Jerry Manuel indicated after that outing that Redding would face the Pirates on Thursday but might be bounced from the rotation without a better showing than his last two starts.
“The last two times he’s been hit pretty good, but he did give us a good outing before that,” Manuel said, referring to Redding’s Mets debut, which came against the Dodgers. “He’ll get the ball again and we’ll see where he is.”
Said Redding: “I’m not commanding the fastball and getting ahead of hitters. Right now, I’m going through a mechanical flaw. You can’t be trying to battle through that during the game. It’s getting to the point now where to be aggressive I almost have to throw the ball down the middle first pitch, trying to get ahead. When you feel that way as a pitcher, or feel that’s the only way you can execute, you’re in for a long day.”
Mets 3, Marlins 2: John Maine(notes) tossed six scoreless innings, but he was pulled from the game after warming up for the seventh because of a stomach virus that had sidelined Carlos Beltran. Angel Pagan, who had the game’s first RBI, already had left the game with a groin injury. Rookies Fernando Martinez and Omir Santos added consecutive RBI doubles in the seventh for a 3-0 lead.
Notes, Quotes
• RF Fernando Martinez recorded his first major league hit Saturday, against the Marlins’ Josh Johnson), in the rookie’s 10th at-bat. Martinez, 20, was promoted Tuesday when Ryan Church was placed on the disabled list with a right hamstring injury.
• CF Carlos Beltran, who pulled himself from Saturday’s game in the fifth inning with a stomach virus, was unable to start Sunday after being listed in the original lineup. Beltran had missed two games last week because of a bone bruise of the tibia in his right leg, but a cortisone injection has alleviated that discomfort, he indicated.
By The Numbers: 1.47 million—Dollars sent to the Chicago White Sox in the Ramon Castro-Lance Broadway trade completed Friday. The sum is the difference in their major league salaries for the remainder of the season.
Quote To Note: “The most important thing is to get better, get healthy, that you can perform effectively, and that’s our goal. I think that’s gonna happen sometime this year, but I can’t guarantee nothing.”—1B Carlos Delgado, on whether he will return to the Mets in 2009. GM Omar Minaya has estimated that Delgado will return in the days before the July 31 trade deadline from right hip surgery he underwent to address a torn labrum and bone spur.
Roster Report
• OF Angel Pagan left Sunday’s game in the fourth inning with a right groin injury. Pagan had been starting in center field in place of Carlos Beltran.
• SS Jose Reyes expects to begin playing extended spring training games Tuesday in Florida, with the hope of returning from the disabled list on Friday in Washington when he’s eligible. After only seven at-bats on the Mets’ recent 10-game road trip, Reyes finally landed on the DL last Tuesday with right calf discomfort.
• IF Alex Cora was expected to complete a three-game rehab assignment with Class AAA Buffalo on Sunday. Cora, who is trying to play with a torn ligament in his right thumb that is expected to require surgery after the season, is eligible to be activated from the DL on Tuesday.
• C Brian Schneider returned from the disabled list Saturday and went 1-for-3 with a walk in his first appearance since April 15. Schneider had injured his right calf while playing in an extended spring training game, setting back his return.
Medical Watch:
CF Carlos Beltran (illness) left the May 30 game and did not play May 31. He had missed games May 26-27 due to a bruised right knee.
C Brian Schneider (strained back) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 16. He had a setback because of a calf injury in early May. He resumed action in extended spring training in late May, and he was activated May 30, making his first appearance since April 15.
SS Jose Reyes (right calf tendinitis) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 21. He expects to begin playing extended spring training games June 2 in Florida and hopes to be activated June 5, the first day he’s eligible.
INF Alex Cora (torn ligament in right thumb) went on the 15-day disabled list May 18. He began a rehab assignment with Class AAA Buffalo on May 29, and he hopes to return to the Mets on June 2, the first day he’s eligible.
RF Ryan Church (right hamstring strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 23.
1B Carlos Delgado (labrum tear in right hip) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 11. He had surgery May 19, and he won’t return before late July.
LHP Oliver Perez (right knee inflammation) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 3. He pitched in extended spring training games May 16 and May 21. He began a rehab assignment with Class AAA Buffalo on May 26, but he was scratched from a May 31 start due to continued knee trouble.
LHP Billy Wagner (Tommy John surgery in September 2008) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 27. He will attempt to throw at the Mets’ spring training complex in April, and he hopes to return for the final month of the season.